Thomas Hardy's legal fictions / [electronic resource]
Ferguson, Trish,author.
Thomas Hardy's fiction is examined in this book in the context of the seismic legal reforms of the nineteenth century as well as legal discourse in the literature of the era. The book examines the ways in which Hardy's role as a magistrate and his interest in the law impacted fundamentally on his prose fiction. It demonstrates that throughout his prose fiction Hardy engages with contentious legal issues that were debated by legal professionals and literary figures of his day, and argues that Hardy used fiction as a forum to question the extent to which legal reform improved the lives of women and the working classes.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 02 Oct 2015).
Acknowlegements -- Series editor's preface -- Introduction -- 'If you only knew me through and through' : the domestic trial scene and narrative advocacy -- 'I was not in my senses, and a man's senses are himself' : the legal defence of insanity -- 'I hate to be thought men's property in that way' : married women and the law -- 'Waiters on chance' : the Tichborne claimant, land law reform and rural dispossession -- Conclusion -- Bibliography -- Index.
Thomas Hardy's fiction is examined in this book in the context of the seismic legal reforms of the nineteenth century as well as legal discourse in the literature of the era. The book examines the ways in which Hardy's role as a magistrate and his interest in the law impacted fundamentally on his prose fiction. It demonstrates that throughout his prose fiction Hardy engages with contentious legal issues that were debated by legal professionals and literary figures of his day, and argues that Hardy used fiction as a forum to question the extent to which legal reform improved the lives of women and the working classes.
Hardy, Thomas, 1840-1928
Hardy, Thomas, 1840-1928
Legal stories, English
Law in literature.
Lawyers in literature.